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Elon Musk has undone Twitter policies implemented during the pandemic to combat dangerous sources of misinformation regarding Covid-19. Per the Associated Press,
Twitter will no longer enforce its policy against COVID-19 misinformation, raising concerns among public health experts and social media researchers that the change could have serious consequences if it discourages vaccination and other efforts to combat the still-spreading virus. Eagle-eyed users spotted the change Monday night, noting that a one-sentence update had been made to Twitter’s online rules: “Effective November 23, 2022, Twitter is no longer enforcing the COVID-19 misleading information policy.” By Tuesday, some Twitter accounts were testing the new boundaries and celebrating the platform’s hands-off approach, which comes after Twitter was purchased by Elon Musk. “This policy was used to silence people across the world who questioned the media narrative surrounding the virus and treatment options,” tweeted Dr. Simone Gold, a physician and leading purveyor of COVID-19 misinformation. “A win for free speech and medical freedom!”
At least this has happened during a time when a significant portion of the population has been vaccinated, though by no means everyone. Time will tell how this plays out. God forbid a deadlier strain emerges. http://bit.ly/3FgEHoA
Surprisingly, protests have continued in China over Beijing’s Zero-Covid strategy. Per the BBC,
People in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou have clashed with police overnight in the latest protest against the country's strict Covid rules. Footage online showed police in white hazmat suits clutching riot shields to protect themselves from debris and glass thrown at them by protesters. Another video showed people being taken away in handcuffs. On Wednesday city officials said Covid restrictions would be relaxed in several districts. China has seen record numbers of new cases in recent days. According to posts on social media, the protests took place late on Tuesday and into the early hours of Wednesday in the district of Haizhu.
Public health officials need to hurry up and vaccinate as much of the country’s elderly population as possible so they can open up a lot more. http://bit.ly/3gNVWo1
Cases of respiratory syncytial virus have been rampant among school age children this year. Pediatric hospital beds are filling up as a result. An article in Futurity explains why this is happening.
RSV infections declined significantly during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to masking and social distancing measures, young children were not exposed to common germs during this time. As many return to schools and other public places without masks, germs and viruses are spreading as normal. However, with less built-up immunity, children are more vulnerable than usual. People can catch RSV more than once, but the first time a child has an RSV infection, they are generally sicker than they are the next time. Because of COVID-19 prevention measures, we have one and two year olds who are just now having their first RSV infection.
Needless to say, this makes it even more important to pay attention to your child’s health, as well as those around them. http://bit.ly/3GYBeMR
During a time when satellites are clogging up the planet’s lower atmosphere, China has done its part in combating the clutter. Per space.com,
Great news. http://bit.ly/3Vmycq1
Thanks for reading. Let’s be careful out there.
China has completed the construction of what is now the world's largest array of telescopes dedicated to studying the sun and how its behavior affects the Earth. The Daocheng Solar Radio Telescope (DSRT), located on a plateau in Sichuan province in southwest China, consists of 313 dishes, each with a diameter of 19.7 feet (6 meters), forming a circle with a circumference of 1.95 miles (3.14 kilometers). DSRT is focused on observing solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) which can interfere with or overload electronics and wreak havoc on and above Earth. CMEs are triggered by realignments in the star's magnetic field that occur in sunspots, and when directed at Earth, can threaten power grids, telecommunications, orbiting satellites and even put the safety of astronauts aboard the International Space Station and China's newly-completed Tiangong space station at risk.
IMAGE CREDIT: NASA.
